Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!hacgate!ashtate!dbase!awd
From: awd@dbase.A-T.COM (Alastair Dallas)
Newsgroups: comp.databases
Subject: Re: will dbase4 do this?
Summary: dBASE IV Does Windows
Message-ID: <1991Jan18.201635.10055@dbase.A-T.COM>
Date: 18 Jan 91 20:16:35 GMT
References: <2273@beguine.UUCP>
Organization: Ashton-Tate, Inc.
Lines: 31

In article <2273@beguine.UUCP>, danielg@uncmed.med.unc.edu writes:
> I'm at the limits of dbase3+.  I need multiple joins, not just views.  I
> am unsure of what dbase4 can do, am pretty sure it does joins, but let me
> outline what I need and perhaps some of you can assure me that 4 does it.
> 
> I would like to have one main database window that takes up the top 2/5 of
> the screen or so.  AT the bottom of this window I would like choices
> (function keys would be nice) that say F1 = test results  F2 = frozen
> tissue samples F3 = tissue results2 etc.  When the user hits one of these
> keys, the other table(s) come up in small windows below the first, called
> on a key field (I would like two key fields per table - I know that that
> may be redundant, but it will be useful).  I would hope to be able to
> scroll through the called tables (can I see >1 record at a time?).  Also,
> would like to have different color widows.  Is this hard?  

dBASE IV v1.1 supports BROWSE in a window (that's the main database window)
as well as BROWSE in a user-defined function.  You can use the latter
fetaure to program popup-BROWSEs attached to function keys.  It's not as
easy as I would like to see it, but the capability is certainly there.
Ashton-Tate is making available an in-house package called the "Control
Center Booster," which demonstrates a lot of these techniques for a 
nominal fee.

I'm one of the developers of dBASE IV and I'm just back to monitoring
this newsgroup on a regular basis--I spent the last two months moving
from Glendale to Los Gatos, California (~350 miles) and taking vacation.
But I'm back to answer your dBASE questions if I can.

/alastair/
Ashton-Tate
Northern California Product Center